These Canada geese caught me somewhat by surprise. I had seen a flock feeding on one of the ponds at Burton Mere but these took of in a flap from a field just outside of the reserve. Just one or two came first but a couple of minutes later a larger group took to the sky and then an even larger flock flew up and overhead before settling on the pond beyond the grassy bank behind me.
Often when you see geese in flight they seem to fly in good order, there is a pattern and structure to the flight but as you can see from the second shot it isn't always that way and sometimes they seem to almost tumble through the sky.
Here are a couple of shots of a pair of Canada Geese in flight, they had just taken off from the wetlands at Burton Mere and I think they look magnificent. It amazes me that such bulky birds manage to get off the ground and still look so elegant.
In the second image you can see that the geese are communicating with each other, they were certainly making a lot of noise but I am sure they weren't just making noise but they were actually "talking". Perhaps the lead goose was saying "keep up".
These shots were taken with my Tamron 150mm - 600mm F/5 - 6.3 lens
ISO250 600mm f/8.0 1/640sec
I have decided that I will try to include more details re the settings for the pictures I share, I know that some of you won't really be interested in that so I will include this detail at the end of each post or maybe under each picture. It really is for my benefit because I think if I pay more attention to these settings it will help me review the things that work well and what I might need to do differently in future.
Today's shot was taken at Burton Mere Wetlands on Thursday afternoon, just as I arrived this noisy flock of Canada Geese flew in. I love to see geese in flight, the way the birds work together and the shapes they make and of course the noise as they announce their arrival before splashing down.
These three pictures were taken yesterday at the RSPB reserve at Burton Mere where I met some helpful and enthusiastic wardens. It was a very windy morning and the reserve was busy with visitors come to see the Long Eared Owl which has recently taken up residence.
The first of today's pictures shows a pair of Canada Geese which very noisily took to the air near me, I was lucky enough top get this shot as they flew past.
Picture two is of the owl, its the full shot as taken in camera and although you can just make out the owl you can also see how effective its camouflage is. The third image is a crop taken from the main image and is slightly enhanced. It was a little difficult to focus but it is possible to see the beautiful owl asleep in the morning sun. There were a number of serious twitchers absorbed with watching the owl and a number of other photographers with some serious gear, I experienced just a little "lens envy".
The final image is of a Robin (yes I have shared a few recently but they are such lovely little birds and always willing to pose) and a very fine specimen too.
